


Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold

by Meilan_Firaga



Series: 25 Days of Christmas Fics - 2015 [4]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, DeathSmoak, F/F, Fluff, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-08
Updated: 2015-12-08
Packaged: 2018-05-05 17:11:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5383703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meilan_Firaga/pseuds/Meilan_Firaga
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the first time in decades, Starling City suffers a massive snowfall. Winter fluff and hijinks ensue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold

**Author's Note:**

> I am already behind posting these, and I'm not even halfway into the month!
> 
> Following this set of prompts (http://yourfavoritescoundrel.tumblr.com/post/104198583046/a-friend-was-looking-for-a-holiday-themed-prompt) my goal is to post a new fic every day for the 2015 holiday season.
> 
> The fourth prompt is "shoveling snow."

 

In the wee hours of the night, long after the good people of Starling City had gone to bed, the clouds began to gather. It had been getting steadily colder for days, biting winds sweeping through the streets. On this night, though, the winds stilled. It started slowly: tiny flakes dropping here and there. Then, quite suddenly, they began to drop in earnest. Cotton balls of white fell from the sky, sticking to the city wherever they touched.

Out on the streets, the Arrow halted in the midst of his latest patrol. There was no voice in his ear at this hour, no partners at his back. These patrols were to sooth his insomnia--and his conscience. There were no plans in these hours. These were the times when he handled the crimes he told his cohorts were the responsibility of the police. He stopped muggers, interrupted petty theft, and followed along rooftops when he saw a woman walking alone in areas with certain reputations. These late nights were always full of the sounds of the city. Quick footsteps against the sidewalk, sirens in the distance, angry shouting.

For once, the city was silent.

Closing his eyes, Starling’s most famous vigilante turned in a slow circle, straining his ears against the quiet. He listened for several long moments, amazed by the depth of quiet around him. Finally he opened his eyes once more, peering at his surroundings with a critical eye. If he were to continue patrolling, something told him he would find no incidents to foil. A city this quiet… perhaps for a short time it had found a measure of peace. Besides, Sara and Nyssa would be curled up in bed where he’d left them.

Tonight, Oliver Queen had a better place to be.

 ~*~*~*~*~*~

 Felicity awoke alone but cozy without any alarms. After a languid stretch, the absence of her phone’s familiar annoying buzz sank into her brain with suspicion on its heels. Rolling over, she stretched her arm across the bed where Slade had lain when she’d fallen asleep--pouting slightly at his absence--to retrieve her glasses from the bedside table. When they rested on her face and she found her clock with corrected vision… Well, let’s just say that no one on Team Arrow would have believed that their little analyst could be out of bed, dressed, and dragging a brush through her hair in under three minutes unless they’d witnessed it themselves.

Simultaneously tugging her hair into a ponytail and chewing on the toothbrush she’d shoved in her mouth on the way out of the bathroom, Felicity’s eyes caught on something white outside the front windows. She froze at the top of the stairs, blinking owlishly at the sight. Across the street, the stoops of her neighbors’ homes were completely covered in snow. The street itself was hidden beneath a blanket of white, cars along the sidewalk so covered they were barely identifiable. Snow was still falling, fluffy white flakes drifting at a lazy pace. Shaking herself from the staring, she turned and slipped back into the bathroom, finishing her morning ablutions in a slightly less frantic manner. At least she’d have an excuse.

Now that she was calmer, she recognized the scent of turkey bacon on the air. Faint music drifted up from the kitchen, and she couldn’t help but grin--just as she did every time--at the fact that Slade had picked up her habit of music in the kitchen. Shoes in hand, she made her way down the steps only to pause again at the bottom, confused and delighted to see that her front porch was completely clear of snow. Past her steps, the walkway and sidewalk had been cleared all the way to her car, which was the only clean one on the block. She didn’t so much as flinch when Slade appeared behind her.

“Good morning,” her murmured, wrapping his arms around her waist and dropping his chin on her shoulder. “I saw the snow when I woke up and knew you’d be frantic about getting to work after clearing off the car.” He nuzzled against the side of her neck, placing a kiss just under her ear. He let her go just as suddenly as he’d appeared, calling out behind him as he made his way back to the kitchen. “Breakfast is ready.”

Following after him, Felicity grinned when she spotted the plates on her tiny kitchen table. There were two plates set for her: bacon, eggs, and pancakes. “So, the pancakes are the apology for turning off my alarm?” she asked him, settling into her chair. She wasn’t entirely sure how Slade managed to roll only one eye and still look like a normal human. She couldn’t even roll both without looking like a cartoon, but he managed it perfectly well when he brought her a mug of coffee.

“I’m not apologizing for turning the alarm off.” He offered no more explanation, settling across from her and tucking into his own pancakes.

Felicity narrowed her eyes, glaring at him over the rim of her coffee mug. “What time did you wake up?”

“Five thirty.”

Google help her, if he didn’t have a good reason she was going to throw a shoe at his head. “Slade, it’s almost ten. Why did you turn off my alarm?”

He shrugged. “Thought you’d want a bit of a lie in since you don’t have work.”

With spectacular timing, the song on the radio ended, a broadcaster chiming in with news for the day. _“You’re listening to NOVA 87.5, Starling City’s only true rock station. Just a quick reminder that Starling City is under an inclement weather alert. Authorities ask that you not leave your homes unless absolutely necessary until City Hall can figure out what to do about the largest snowfall our city has had in decades. Hell, even Queen Consolidated has closed its doors today. You know if the corporate bigwigs don’t want to come out in their private cars to get work done that it’s got to be bad.”_

 Across the table, Slade was smirking smugly around a mouthful of eggs, his eyes cast down on his plate. Felicity huffed, every ounce of irritation evaporating immediately. She took a huge bite of her pancakes, fighting hard not to make some inappropriate noises because Slade, as always, had made them entirely too delicious. Halfway through the mouthful, it hit her like a ton of bricks. She swallowed hastily.

“I’m sorry you did all that work shoveling snow for nothing,” she told him, stretching out one leg to run her foot up his calf. “It was really sweet.”

Finally, he looked up from his plate, smiling at her fully. “It was worth it, love.”

“Are you sure you used to be a villain?” she teased.

His smirk returned instantaneously. “Used to be implies that I’ve fully retired. I still have my villainous ways.”

Across the city, Oliver Queen opened the alley door of the foundry to be met with a solid wall of snow that filled the entire doorway. From the corner of his vision, a piece of laminated white cardstock pinned to the door caught his eye.

_I told you I’d have my revenge, kid. --S_

Sara and Nyssa cackled at him for the rest of the day.

 

 


End file.
